


Without Any Fuss

by anr



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2007-09-26
Updated: 2007-09-26
Packaged: 2017-11-23 03:54:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,399
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/617803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anr/pseuds/anr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fifteen times Jack knew it was the end of the world.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Without Any Fuss

**Author's Note:**

> Spoilers (sort of): seasons 1-9  
> Crossovers (sort of): The Stand, Jericho, Deep Impact  
> Beta: mandysbitch  
> Request: postapocalyptic au fic.

  


* * *

  


_I_.

Four days without sleep, two without food. They're running on bad coffee and sheer determination, fighting an enemy they can't beat, fighting themselves and hopelessness.

He has promoted Carter twice, demoted her three times. Daniel stopped speaking to him altogether thirty-six hours ago. Teal'c still hasn't returned from P8H952.

Back in his office, he finds his most recent letter of resignation and methodically tears it into strips.

He won't need it.

  


* * *

  


_II_.

He's setting the table when the phone rings; thinking about the budget discussions he had with the President earlier, about the latest Stanley Cup contenders, and the new truck he thinks they should buy.

"... we'll be right there," he hears Samantha say from the kitchen. He looks over just as she hangs up, meeting her gaze and holding it.

For a long, breathless moment, neither of them moves.

"They're here," she says.

He blows out the candles.

  


* * *

  


_III_.

Fifteen years since they evacuated everyone they could to Atlantis but Jack can still name three reasons why this city will never be home.

> 3\. No hockey. He's tried several times over the years to keep the sport alive, to build up teams and fans, but it never seems to stick.
> 
> 2\. No beer. The alien moonshine they keep trading for simply isn't the same, no matter what the Geek Department says.
> 
> 1\. No Carter.

  


* * *

  
_IV_.

For all their resources, the SGC suffers from the superflu along with the rest of the world. Three days since they've seen a television broadcast, but Carter manages to locate part of the President's address on the internet and she hooks it up to the base's PA system.

"... repeat what I said at the beginning of my talk to you this evening: there is no truth -- _no truth_ \-- to the rumour that this strain of flu is fatal. In the greatest majority of cases, the persons afflicted can expect to be up and around and feeling fine within a week. Further --"

The President interrupts himself with a spasm of coughing and Jack's attention is drawn to the corner of the room.

Even as he watches, Carter sneezes again.

  


* * *

  


_V_.

He stands at the doorway to Carter's lab and watches her destroy everything in it, watches her smash every piece of equipment, every computer, five years of her life.

He makes no move to stop her.

  


* * *

  


_VI_.

Afterwards, they walk through the streets, stepping over rubble and debris, the P90's in their hands lowered and almost unnecessary now that it's all mostly over.

He's not surprised by the devastation he sees, just disappointed. They should have been able to spare their world this, should have done a better job.

Pausing to get his bearings, he watches as Carter kicks away a stop sign, revealing one of Apophis' men. The Jaffa is still alive, fingers scrabbling in the dirt beside him, dry lips moving soundlessly.

Without any fuss, Carter raises her gun and puts a bullet between his eyes. She walks on.

After a moment, Jack follows.

  


* * *

  


_VII_.

He can see the 'gate, a shimmer of blue light waiting just before the horizon, waiting for them.

To his left, Daniel is half-dragging Teal'c, the two of them struggling to keep up as he and Carter push forward, Carter unclipping her pack and shedding it mid-step without ever missing a beat and, as much as he hates it, hates the mere _idea_ of it, he knows that he'll leave the guys behind if he has to. Getting Carter and the antidote she's carrying through the Stargate is the only thing that matters now.

A soft beep as his watch finishes counting down from thirty-eight minutes. In the distance, the Stargate disengages.

He stops running.

  


* * *

  


_VIII_.

He's at the cabin when it starts; far enough away to survive the blast, close enough to see the mushroom cloud rising on the horizon.

Behind him, the screen door bangs shut as Sam steps outside. "Jack? I think there's a problem with the dish. My cell just --" A sharp intake of air; her footsteps on the dock falter and he can sense her stopping somewhere behind him. "My god," she breathes out. " _Jack_..."

He weighs their options, makes a decision. "Get the truck."

  


* * *

  


_IX_.

They sit with their backs to the DHD, legs outstretched and heads tipped back.

"Think he knows yet?"

With perfect timing, there's a small, bright flash in the night sky, the flare of a faraway sun going nova.

(He wonders which planet she will want to go after next; wonders just how deep her need for revenge actually is; wonders if he'll ever try to stop her.)

Carter's smile is grim, satisfied. "He knows."

  


* * *

  


_X_.

Carter's in the lab tent, arms buried inside their last remaining MALP and gaze focused on the laptop Hailey is holding. She doesn't seem to notice his entrance behind her.

"Carter, have you seen --"

"Under the bed," she answers, without waiting for him to finish.

"Thanks." Rocking back on his heels, he watches her dig deeper.

After a moment, she pulls her hands free. "Do it," she says, nodding. Hailey keys in something on the laptop.

There's a sharp whine as the power builds up and then -- nothing. The noise cuts out and an acrid smell precedes the thin plume of smoke. He wrinkles his nose as Carter sighs.

"Well, that's that then," says Hailey, unplugging the computer and getting to her feet.

"Yeah." Carter sounds utterly defeated and he reaches out to lay a hand on her shoulder, squeezing gently. She shakes him off as she stands up. " _Fuck_."

Hailey finds the screwdriver and starts to cannibalise the machine.

Before he can stop himself, he thinks, _Siler could have fixed it_ , and turns away before Carter can read that thought on his face.

  


* * *

  


_XI_.

Carter dyes her hair in a motel sink, rivulets of muddy coloured water dripping down the back of her neck and patterning the already stained tiles.

"You should do the same," she says when she's finished, tossing the ruined towel onto the floor.

 _You look different enough for the both of us_ , he thinks. He has to stop himself from reaching out and touching the dark strands feathering her cheek. "I'll think about it."

  


* * *

  


_XII_.

"... I am declaring a state of martial law. The armed forces and the National Guard are working with local law enforcement. A national curfew begins at midnight tonight. Now, wherever you are, go home. Stay off the roads after sunset. Crimes against persons or property will be dealt with swiftly and harshly. News stations around the nation are being..."

Standing, Daniel walks over and turns off the television.

None of them say a word.

  


* * *

  


_XIII_.

Six seconds to go and he hears her coming before he sees her, knows her footsteps like he knows his own, knows what it must mean to hear her frantic, futile approach now.

Three seconds, and he turns away from a countdown he has no time to stop, watches her push past Walter, knocking him down as she clears the last two steps into the control room, too late but still trying, still fighting.

" _Wait_ \--"

  


* * *

  


_XIV_.

There's a flash of light and suddenly he's standing on a beaming platform, coffee mug raised halfway to his mouth.

Another flash, and he looks down to see Ellie lying at his feet, singlet rucked up and legs kicking, a cry already in progress.

A third flash, and Sam is across from him, a bottle of talcum powder in one hand and a fresh diaper in the other.

He puts down the mug and scoops up their daughter as Sam looks around, her bewilderment fading fast as she recognises their surroundings.

"Thor!" she shouts.

Jack turns to the window, unsurprised to see Earth rotating slowly before them. He starts to shift Ellie in his arms, to prop her up so she can see, only to freeze as the Earth seems to _contract_ in on itself...

The hyperdrive kicks in.

  


* * *

  


_XV_.

He hasn't even finished reading the report on SG1's mission to capture (and turn) Gerak when his phone rings.

"O'Neill."

Near silence on the other end, just the faint echo of breathing, steady and familiar, telling in its own way. Closing the file on his desk, he leans back in his chair. Loosens his tie. Waits.

"Take me to the cabin," she says.

And now he knows.

  


* * *

The End

**Author's Note:**

> PREQUEL (scene X): **[This Is The Way](http://archiveofourown.org/works/617792)**
> 
> FULL STORY (scene XI): **[The World Asunder](http://archiveofourown.org/works/617815)**
> 
> ORIGINAL URL: <http://anr.livejournal.com/293555.html>


End file.
